The present invention relates to the field of hinges; more specifically, to a barrel-type hinge with a friction providing device which applies a transverse force to the knuckles and pintle to cause the hinge to resist movement.
Hinges have been known for several centuries. Before the advent of metalworking, they were constructed of leather, vegetable or fabric straps or bands. Today, similar hinges are formed from a connecting plastic strip, which is seen, e.g. in video rental boxes and the like. Ease and reliability of use is the key consideration in hinge construction.
The first metal hinges were simply wire that was bent double and linked together. These hinges, while stronger and more accurate in motion than their more primitive ancestors, still were far short of modern demands in both areas.
Metal smiths conceived the modern barrel hinge to solve those problems. A barrel hinge (sometimes called a butt-hinge because the pieces it joins end up xe2x80x9cabuttingxe2x80x9d each other) includes two interlocking pieces, which have curved leaves wrapping around the same pivot pin. Such barrel hinges may be made of almost any metal, but in the real world iron and brass have proven to be the most popular choices. The hinge plates may be of various sizes and shapes (see, e.g. U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,562 illustrating folded plates).
Barrel hinges are commonly used in homes today to mount room or main entry doors, shutters, cabinetry doors, etc. In older houses, or in newer houses of less-than-optimal construction, the framing or leveling of the structure may be less than completely true. Thus, the doors may swing open or shut of their own volition. Or, a consumer may wish for a door to have some resistance to swing, e.g. to prevent a passing breeze from slamming the door to the closed position, with the concomitant trauma to the house and resident eardrums. A consumer may also wish a chest lid to remain in an upright position without needing a prop rod or the like.
However, a complete retrofitting of doors and lids to make them hang true would be inordinately expensive in most homes, and a total replacement of hinges with nonstandard hinges will lead to an aesthetically displeasing look unless a complete surface refinishing and repainting is undertaken.
An inexpensive, convenient, and simple solution to these desires is needed.
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide an inexpensive adaptation to barrel-type hinges to allow for friction to be imparted to the hinge.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide for an adjustable friction-imparting device for barrel-type hinges.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide a simple, easily manufactured hinge modification to provide for the imparting of friction to a barrel-type hinge.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide a hinge adaptation, which is low profile and provides useful frictional additions.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a hinge modification that can be accomplished with a minimum of tools and simple parts.
It is still a further object to provide an adjustable friction-imparting device, which can be used to provide different levels of turning resistance in a hinge.
These, and other objects, will become readily apparent to one of skill in the art having regard for this disclosure.
Applicants have developed a novel device and method for preventing the swinging of hinged items by the application of a frictional element to the hinge. Friction-inducing elements are compressed against the outer surfaces of the knuckles of a barrel-type hinge, causing them to be frictionally engaged. In preferred embodiments, the frictional engagement is adjustable.